First Post From 'Merica 🦅 Kentuckiana 🌪️ Where The Bible Belt, Rust Belt, & Tornado Alley Collide
Greetings ASEAN Hivers, I'm here in the good ole' USA, already missing my Khmer family deeply, but I still want to show you the agricultural and industrial wasteland where I'm from.
The Princeton Auto Parke 🚘
I do have some last pics of my solo time without the family in Suriname, but perhaps I'll share that another day. For now I want to share with you all a side of America not portrayed in Hollywood movies. My father has his own "buy here, pay here" used car lot, and this is because my area of the USA is economically stagnant, few people have good enough credit to even get a $5,000 loan from a local bank.
At my dad's place, you can make weekly or monthly payments to eventually own your car, of course with some interest calculated. One of my many old jobs was to steal the car back when customers stopped making their payments. This was never satisfying nor a safe job by any means, especially when nearly everyone has a gun in southern Indiana.
@Sreypov's Moto 🛵
For now the moto I purchased for my wife when I thought our US immigration interview was approaching, lies in limbo inside the garage at the back of the car lot's garage. I did take it for a quick test drive, but it's freezing here, simply too cold to use this for transportation.
My Former Job & Workmate 👨🏭
I've done tons of manual labor jobs in the USA, and detailing cars was one I did for many years. Mike is my former workmate, and still employed by my Dad doing the same job I used to do with him many years ago. Detailing a car consists of using a melee of toxic chemicals to clean the interior and exterior of a car, in an effort to make it look as good as possible, allowing the boss man to charge top dollar for each car.
Here are the chemicals I used to work with, the wheel acid is the one that can actually make you black out and wake up on the floor, and pure ammonia is pretty noxious too. I've blacked out more than once cleaning cars, so maybe this is why I wasn't scared of COVID nor the vaccine.
I probably still have enough wheel acid in my lungs to kill any potential corona virus. Well, after usually around 8+ hours, a car is completely finished. This particular one Mike was working on was about 85% complete. If you're wondering if I miss the job, the answer is not really.
The Office Side Of Things 👨💼
Here is a view of the office, with my Dad on the phone making deals, a typical site. Also, since I left, our little farmtown has contributed a recent highschool graduate to the WNBA, a professional women's basketball league. Her name is Jackie Young, and she's the biggest thing to come out of our town since Orville Redenbacher.
Christmas-time is approaching, so decorated trees are a common sight inside many local businesses, or should I say what few local businesses there are. In the above photo on the left, my dad, the bossman, is talking to Scott, another former workmate of mine who graduated from the detailing world to an office setting.
Vast Expanses of Nothing-ness 🌽
My dad asked me to accompany him on a trip to the junkyard and a mechanic, about 45km away in the biggest nearby urban area, Evansville, Indiana. The drive to this town is filled with vast fields of mono-crop chemical agriculture, mostly corn, but not corn legal for human consumption. It is mostly GMO corn to be used for animal feed.
Corn fields, gas stations, and oversized American flags dominate the landscape. There isn't much social living like in SE Asia going on in this part of the world.
A local tourist attraction is the oversized Santa Claus, which stands year-round, but has changed owners countless times since I've been a kid. Whoever owns and displays this antique fiberglass Santa is basically the richest person around.
Southern Indiana is long straight unending highways and flat horizons, so just try not to fall asleep while driving.
Industrial Wasteland 🏭
As we enter the city of Evansville, the former industrial glory is immediately apparent. This town has been in economic decline since the 1950s, and is commonly featured in the USA's worst ten cities to live in. It's just a series of semi-abandoned former factories, and almost every industrial building is for rent.
On this drive I realized that southern Indiana is a third-world country by many international parameters. It was hard for me to find anything interesting to take photos of, so I just decided to take photos of the things that reminded me why I left the USA for Cambodia in 2010 with $500 in my pocket.
Evansville is known for high quality methamphetamine, low quality jobs, obesity, and a low quality of life. Public transportation is abysmal, leaving poor people who live in this city with several hours of commuting just to travel short distances.
Local Business 🏠 A Dying Way Of Life
A site you don't see very often in most of the USA is small locally owned businesses. This bar/restaurant we passed would be considered massive by Cambodian standards, but running a business any smaller than this is basically illegal because of countless zoning regulations.
NGOs Fixing Problems ⛲
Much like Cambodia, NGOs take on most of the serious problems government is either unwilling or unable to afford. Decent parks are are in southern Indiana, and if you see a good one, chances are an NGO is behind it. This cool little park had a sign highlighting the sponsor who made this possible.
Brown & Gloomy 🚏
The state of this bus stop is an example of the failed economy of the area I grew up in. Massive parking lots with hardly any cars and strip malls with many vacancies dominate the part of town near the junkyard.
We dropped off my aunt Rita at a transmission repair business to run a car back to my little farmtown 45km away.
Note that my aunt Rita is a ginger like me, so us freckle faces have a special bond.
This shows the tallest buildings in Evansville, a bank and the courthouse in the distance on the righthand side (I think it's a courthouse).
Our last stop was the junkyard, a typical stop for used car lot running on a tight budget. After we left this place, we stopped by a redneck mechanic's place who shook my dad's hand with such force that he actually commented on it. The mechanic's response was "My mom didn't raise no p^ssy!" Welcome to 'Merica everyone!
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Wow you made it out of Suriname!
You have just reminded me of a trip we took when I was a kid and passed through Indiana. Gary to be exact. Not a fan of these parts of 'merica.
It must have been surreal to see your folks again. Hopefully it won't be too long before you can get the flip flops back on and to the ladies for a tuk tuk ride.
I have purchased cars in my past only from someone like your dad. The last one died before the payments were complete but I got good use from it. It's the only way in my opinion unless you're wealthy.
As sad as the separation is, it's a step forward. Congratulations on that leg of the game.
I've been to Gary once, that's on the far opposite side of the state. I'm almost closet to Atlanta, Georgia, than Gary, but Gary's industrial wasteland makes Evansville look like a nice place. Gary used to have the highest murder rate per capita in the US for many years.
I am already jealous of the things I see my Khmer family eating in Cambodia. We'll be together soon one way or another.
so the real question to you Justin, what is the incentive for people to live there?
I was just thinking about the nouveau riche Bitcoiners and crypto folks buying up these dilapidated towns and turning them into citadels. :)
we have too much land... also too much of that land have been 'built-up'
I'm not gonna say it's not impossible, but there is just so much working against this area. There are places with more affordable land and a better quality of life, and the obesity rates make people watching also very depressing. Shame, cause one of my favorite hobbies in Cambodia is just sitting somewhere and watching life happen. Indiana's not exactly the place to sit around and watch life happen.
That is a really good question, one I am still unable to answer at 38 years old. I left this place in 2010 and received an upgrade in quality of life by relocating to Cambodia, not sure if that speaks highly of Cambodia or negatively of the area I'm from. This area didn't seem that bad to me growing up as a kid, but I had no references to compare it to. The only true incentives to move here I know come from foreign medical professionals, mostly Indians, whose visa policy makes them practice in underserved areas of the USA for several years, but I don't know the full details of those policies.
Indiana sure reminds me of Saskatchewan!
How long until you rejoin the fam?
I've never been to Canada, but I've heard Saskatchewan is the most industrial area of Canada, is that right? Hopefully I'm back in Cambodia before 2022. I already have a ticket, but I lack a visa, a pretty serious issue that needs to be sorted.
Mostly flat agricultural land. Not sure about the industry, I think we'd be behind the larger population centers of Canada for that.
I think I must be confused then. Well, if there is one, what area of Canada (other than the northern diamond mines) would you say is full of abandoned (or not) industrial buildings with its economic glory days years in the past?
oh, you are DEEP in Indiana! last time i drove through Gary on the way back to Cleveland from Chicago and i saw a literal TRASH TORNADO. Gary reminded me of this town outside of Cleveland called Lorain, where the auto plants closed and its mostly just poor people and drugs anymore.
This is the America we imagine from Australia... a trash tornado? Oh boy!
we got it all in the US!
That sounds worse than a shark-nado. The north of the state is all industrial rust belt, pretty sad. The glory days were in the 1950s. Where I'm at is the where all rivers converge, at the borders of Illinois, Kentucky, and Indiana. We have touches of the north industrial wasteland culture, Appalachian hillbillies, Amish, coal mines culture, and of course corn culture, what Indiana is probably most known for.
Your dad is handsome man! I hope I could see Indiana someday and your family. We miss you B.
I wish you could meet your American in-laws too, but you're not missing out by not seeing Indiana.
Oh goodness, you don't seem too happy o be home. Must be quite the culture shock. When do you think you'll be in Cambodia? Will you earn a bit more cash there first? You must be missing the fam terribly.
It's not exactly a fun place to be, but it's a necessary step. If things go as planned, I'll be back in Cambodia before 2022. There is no cash to earn here, I earned $30 yesterday for a half day's work, and then posted about it on Hive, watched the potential post payout soar to $90 in the first day. Ironically, I make more Hiving than I ever could in southern Indiana. Of course I miss the fam, so I just try to stay distracted as much as possible.
This write up makes me smile and feel sad, all at the same time.
This place / these places remind me of a song called 'Depreston'. Ever heard of it?
Here's the lyrics:
"Depreston" by Courtney Barnett
You said we should look out further, I guess it wouldn't hurt usWe don't have to be around all these coffee shops
Now we've got that percolator, never made a latte greater
I'm saving twenty three dollars a week
We drive to a house in Preston, we see police arrestin'
A man with his hand in a bag
How's that for first impressions? This place seems depressing
It's a Californian bungalow in a cul-de-sac
It's got a lovely garden, a garage for two cars to park in
Or a lot of room for storage if you've just got one
And it's going pretty cheap you say, well it's a deceased estate
Aren't the pressed metal ceilings great?
Then I see the handrail in the shower, a collection of those canisters for coffee tea and flour
And a photo of a young man in a van in Vietnam
And I can't think of floorboards anymore, whether the front room faces south or north
And I wonder what she bought it for
If you've got a spare half a million
You could knock it down and start rebuildin
Source
Sending you loads of good vibes, my friend.
P.S. You are starting to become my favorite travel writer
That is quite a song, gonna have to look it up and give a listen. "Travel writer" has me laughing, such boring content, just wait until I document a highschool basketball game. Competitive sports are just so alien to me now, seems we should be teaching the kids to engage in cooperative things with kids from other schools instead of competitive things. It seems this kind of thinking reinforces the "them" and "us" mentality.
You are the kind of person that can turn boring content into entertainment. You are very skilled, my friend ( and extremely funny ).
And yes, I totally agree with the competitive thing not being a good thing to grow up on. It is - of course - what schools and the whole grading system does to us too. It focuses a lot on differences.
I am still amazed how passionate Americans are about sports. I just wish they put the same effort into the culinary arts. I have already been here almost a week, still never seen anyone cut a vegetable with a knife. I have watched my friends and family microwave things, dump frozen things into a pot, and pour cans into pots. This is a level of culinary depravity that Southeast Asians would never accept.
Ouch. That's pretty impressive ( in a sad way ) but not necessarily surprising to me.
I guess some cliches are actually true.
Cambodia is gonna be a breath of fresh air to you :<)
Indeed, I can't wait.
Oh man... Reading this feel a punch in the guts. So I can only imagine how you must feel like being back there again. :-( The only redeeming thing is the potential to dream: think about all that land, all that space, and even those people populating it, wanting to do some awesome and amazing things. Whether that may be a thriving tiny-small business Cambodian style, or building a naturally thriving food forest in midst all that agricultural desolation. But hey, I bet you are dreaming about all those things too... in lovely Cambodia, together with your family. :-) So in the end, reading these lines of yours, actually makes me feel a bit optimistic, wanting to visit both Indiana and Cambodia, in order to create some wonderful things.
Sorry I haven't much time to engage lately, been meaning to catch up on your posts for what seems like a month now. You can see why though, things are hectic, internet is scarce, etc. There are food forests, permaculture projects, etc., in this area, but most people choose Missouri or Kentucky/Tennessee to do things like this the quality of life is better in those places, land still cheap, and the topography more interesting.
The problem here is that 98% of the land is GMO corn coated in Monsanto products. You couldn't get enough distance away from these fields to avoid cross-contamination, another reason to choose a place with a bit of mountains to attempt organic forms of agriculture.
I think if I had to live in the USA forever, I'd go live in a Cambodia immigrant community somewhere and engage in various forms of unlicensed business that this community embraces. Indiana could use some minds like you, but I'd honestly choose Mexico every time if I were in your shoes.
I can totally see that! I myself are always drawn to the hills if I have a choice, as it has so many obvious advantages. In fact, there was an amazing couple blogging on Hive (actually it was the previous chain) from their permie farm in Missouri a few years ago. Reading their posts got me quite excited about exploring that region. But now, as it has been the case for a while, Mexico is turning out to be actually a very good place, so that is what I should appreciate. And for you I wish a speedy and mostly simple, unproblematic move to Cambodia.
Never ever trade Mexico for Missouri, you made the right choice. On second that, there is town called Mexico, Missouri, but it's not exactly a nice place to live.
the prime example of "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" but always be safe.
this is something that so much different from what we imagine about America.
hopefully getting past those regulations doesn't need any bribing involved like most of of the thing here
I am from the part of America my country would like to keep a secret from the outside world. New York and California are the examples we want to show the world, but most people don't live on the coast, they live in the boring vast expanse in between the coasts. I think much more than bribes will be required to get me back to Cambodia, but it's still an easier system to deal with than the American government. In the USA there is massive corruption too, but it's been legalized and referred to as "lobbying," and involves a lot more 0s than Cambodian bribes.
LOL, you are right, I do smokes to kill the Virus .. haha.
Merica.. Why you always say "Incomplete word" ... . From your story, your hometown is not a growing city today. The street looks empty.
Living in "Merica" is something difficult for Asean people since Asean people do small business on the side of street. Meanwhile it is illegal .
In Indonesia corn is for human and animal consumption while in your country consuming corn is illegal.
I am not sure if corn that is planted in Indonesia the same as corn in USA. yet, corn is for consumption here.
Haha, it's good to keep COVID scared by letting it know you've had much more dangerous substances inside your body in the past 😁. My hometown has unfortunately been in decline since the 1980s, when I was born. You're right about ASEAN small business, because I know a few Cambodian communities in the USA, and they still do microbusiness from home even though it's technically illegal in the USA. Everything from nails and haircutting to restaurants all exist illegally underground in Cambodian communities in the USA, I'd love to see this economy some day.
Here 95% of the corn is for livestock, and there are different laws regulating how much pesticides and chemicals you can use these crops, and also change the DNA more too. Funny, we won't allow this for corn to be eaten by humans, but we will allow it to be fed to animals that we we eat, silly I realize. This is why American meet and dairy products are illegal in many countries around the world.
Some question sir, so you carry gun over there? Do your dad carry gun for self protection? I see weather at there is cooling by now. And your dad looks so young too 👍🏻 I like the name of junkyard - auto salvage 😅 and the mechanic response 🤣🤣 surely is epic when he said it. And welcome to the merica sir
My dad doesn't carry a gun (not 100% sure), neither do I. My Rastafari spirituality prevents me from carrying a gun or engaging in things only meant for destruction, but I am really weird here. The reason why I call it 'Merica is because of people like the mechanic, I always forget how much foul language people use around my hometown. It's not very elegant or warm-feeling?
Ah I see. As you know asean we aren't allow so this got my attention 😅. I guess in real scene would be different from movie right 😅
Your friend Mike is good at cleaning cars, because that car looked new!
Am also struck by how much Americans love Christmas - I guess because all that red and green cheers things up in winter.
That's a good point, I never thought how much sadder and duller this time of the year would be without Christmas decorations and colors. Mike is a pro, been detailing cars 20+ years by now. He'd run circles around me if I tried to work with him these days.
Congratulations chef, you made it out of Suriname! Good that you are with your family now in the good ol´merica. I hope it will not take long that you get to Cambodia to reunite with your family. Good Luck!
I can't wait to see them again, missing them so much already. My return to Cambodia has been postponed because my chance at a visa has been dashed, new stricter policies implemented. I am now considering a move to Albania, a place I've lived alone before and found happiness and a good quality of life, plus no EU visa complications.
There is a family reunification visa in Albania too, so if I unable to reunite with the fam in Cambodia, perhaps we could eventually be together in Albania.
Oh yes why not Albania, it´s bordering Greece and they already applied for the EU membership. But it´s not like Cambodia because they have cold season, you know how it was during the time you´ve lived there. Cambodia is probably still the better place for your family because it has constant temps of ,the tropics. But when luck gets out of your way for the Cambodian visa, check out Morocco, maybe they are relaxed as far as visa is concerned, it´s also near Spain just about 30 minutes by boat.
Yes, Albania a bit cold for my tastes, but there a few banana trees in the far south. I never looked at Morocco because the visa for Cambodians is quite complicated. Her best chances in that part of the world would only be Albania and Georgia. We have some Lebanese friends we knew in Cambodia that have relocated to Georgia, and they love it, but once again, a bit cold for my tastes.
Have you considered trying it out in the Philippines? Hehehe...it is similar to Cambodia and if you happen to like Cebu, there are a lot of beaches with white sands... Have a look because the cost of living is not expensive. There are many foreigners who chose to live in Cebu. I am just not sure of the visa requirements. There is no language problem because the medium of instruction is English. There are many aseanhive members who live in Cebu. I was born there but grew up in Manila. One hiver discoveringarni lives in Cebu with her foreigner husband as well as purepinay with her american hubby.
The Philippines has one of the toughest visa policies for foreign residency. I think the only one I could have a chance at would be the retirement visa, but I'll have to wait 15+ years and have some more income to qualify for that. I think the Philippines is more possible if I seek employment and a sponsor, but we enjoy being self-employed and doing microbusiness.
Awtsch! After living in Europe for almost 4 decades I am not updated. I haven´t heard about that tough resident visa requirements since we already abandoned the idea of living there permanently. But Georgia might be an option. I am sure you and your fam will get used to the cold weather.
Everyone I've ever known that lived in the Philippines was either married to a local or worked for some kind of big business. I think those are the only two practical ways.
It is a pity for other foreigners... because the Phil.government is relaxed in issuing visas for the Chinese and Koreans who are also working in Casinos and other big Chinese companies particularly in Manila. I do not know how they can sponsor thousands of Chinese in the country when many Filipinos are jobless. I think it has something to do with the income the government gets from the Casino operations. My family lives very close to the International Airport in Manila and it´s where in these vicinities these Chinese Nationals live.
Visa policies almost never make sense. As my family and I like being self-employed, we are reluctant to give that up even for a short time, but we also lack the size of business and financial resources to land ourselves a business visa in any country. If some country allowed business visas for a $500 investment, we'd move to that country ASAP.
Hi hi Justin ... This is an interesting read. Everytime you tell me about the detailing job, I had to use some of my imagination but finally get to see it. 8 hours for a car is pretty tough. Now I get it why after I spend about an hour or two on my car, it doesn't look as showroom as it should be. It must be pretty scary to steal back those cars . In Malaysia, car dealers usually collect the full amount for second hand cars that can't be loaned. I have been really curious about guns . So it is that most Americans can carry a gun at all times in case of self defense?
Your dad looks pretty young. What was his first response when he saw you after such a long time. The buildings despite mostly being vacant looks quite decent except without humans. It's pretty sad to have that feeling of being in a whole city where economic activity slows down and buildings are left vacant.
Are there any greens? Just curious cause I looked at all the photos and did not see much trees or plants.
Some cars require more than a full day, especially if we decide to wax or lift the car and spray the bottom with new black paint. GUNS are everywhere, whether seen or not, almost everybody has a gun somewhere. People here talk about how scary Cambodia must be, but yet they don't feel safe in their own homes with a loaded gun and the doors locked. They think I'm bonkers mad when I tell them I used to not even lock my door at night in Cambodia because at that time I had nothing of value to steal. This time of the year all of the plants and trees die or lose their leaves, so everything is brown, gray, and cold.
My Dad was happy to see me, and of course he'd like to have me work for his business, but he will only pay me $30 for half-day of work, an unlivable wage even in relatively cheap Indiana. I made $85 on Hive posting about this adventure which I was paid $30 to partake in, so it's obvious I am better off blogging for my income, even in the USA.
Hey... Nice to see some photos from where you're from and the name of your father's company is a nice play on words 😂.
And I've seen short documentaries and news coverage about those "food deserts" in the USA, which really is a shame. Everyone should have the right to proper and healthy food nearby. If you have to travel so far, the cost will definitely increase.
"Food dessert" is a term my family had to learn in person in Suriname. Also "bedroom community" is now something my Khmer family is familiar with. I must admit food desserts and bedroom communities are two things that shouldn't exist in any community anywhere in the world. It is hard to tell which country is fatter, but I think Americans are a little bigger than Surinamers.
The numbers are out there, but from face value I would say the people in the USA. Do you think it's the amount of processed food consumed? We also have those here, but in smaller quantities, because for example fast-food is pretty pricey here, while it's cheaper in the USA. Still a lot of obesity going around here, unfortunately.
I agree. Some time ago I've seen a tv-program online, where a local mother asked for help for her sick malnourished child, come to read a few days ago that the child had died. Really broke my heart to see children suffering like that.
I think Surinamers love their sugary fizzy drinks more though, it would be a very close call. I never watched much TV in Suriname, but I did see an instance of hunger and desperation from an older Guyanese couple once, broke my hears. Nobody in Cambodia ever goes, hungry, the village mentality always makes sure a poor person can ask any nearby house for some rice and fruits, and they are culturally obligated to help.
The fizzy drinks part is true, but I can see it changing in my small social bubble. Am still aware that some people here drink soft drinks as if it's water, even early mornings 🤦♀. We do have a high number of heart disease(s) and diabetes.
Now I'm in the USA, just saw a friend the other day that only drinks Mountain Dew, no water at all under any circumstances.
Oh damn... 🙈 I don't want to stereotype, but I have indeed seen reality tv programs where some Americans drink those drinks as if it were water.
Its good to know about your life back there.
Why don't i see pepole outside the buildings?
Are there shops and scbools around there?
There are some shops and schools, but most people stay inside their homes or cars. There isn't much social living and economic activity on the streets like in most SE Asian countries. Most people in the USA don't know their neighbor, but this is the way Americans prefer to live. I will never understand this way of life, and I was born here.
haha, maybe they all are introverts. Somehow I like how they live. unlike here in the Ph, neighbors act like CCTV and are watching you all the time and then talk about your life as if they don't have one
I am familiar with this mentality in Cambodia. I think the middle ground is Albania, where Asian culture meets western culture, not too nosy but the people are social and genuinely care.
Now here is the Merica you do not see everyday. What a reverse culture shock it must be for yah. Barely any people around it seems. I can imagine it is a good reflection moment to. Blessings Justin.
It is very culturally confronting, and just like Suriname, people can't understand why I could never accept the local lifestyle. If I would've stayed here after highschool, I'd either be in the coal mines or the rubber factory, both depressing career choices.
Hi friend. I know your sad because your 3 beautiful ladies is away from you. But despite of that, the sadness of your being alone can ease a little while your in your dad's home now. Yeah it seems that your not totally happy being back to that place, and one of that reason is that your family is not with you. For the meantime keep spending more time with your dad while you are there. Because sooner you will be away with him already. Keep fighting and God bless.😊
Thank you, I miss my ladies so much, and it's even harder knowing I don't have a visa to be with them, and now the visa policy is getting tougher in Cambodia, but I don't know why. I will keep staying distracted as much as I can, but I am clearly depressed, I can't even think of anything to write about on Hive anymore. 🙏
Be strong friend and dont lose hope. Continue writing here in hive. Express what's your thoughts to us. We are always here for you.
Thank you, that is reassuring, this community has been such a positive influence in my family's lives.
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